1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a lifter for a modular panel and to a special electrical adapter fitting for use with modular panels of a kind electrically prewired with a raceway along a lower edge of the panel. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a combination tool including a lifter in accordance with the present invention and a special electrical adapter fitting, which can be used with other lifters, for raising modular partitions or modular panels with electrical raceway systems at the bottom of the partition or panel, for the purpose of installing a floor covering, making floor repairs, removing and installing carpeting, leveling partitions or panels on uneven floors or reconfiguring the panels.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Wall structures formed from a plurality of prefabricated panels are used extensively in commercial and industrial buildings for dividing interior regions of the building into smaller working spaces. Such structures have proven particularly effective in creating a sense of place which is very important to people, while additionally minimizing noise.
When the carpeting under a modular system wears out or when it necessary to make floor repairs, level the partitions or panels on uneven floors or to reconfigure the panels, the modular furniture must be disassembled. This is an expensive and disruptive procedure as each desk and work area must be cleared of all business supplies and personal items. Computer, telephone, telex and other communication systems must be disconnected and all equipment removed. Each desk, bookshelf, or accessory must be removed from the furniture panels and the panels then disassembled.
In order to avoid the expense and disruption in disassembling modular furniture, there have been several types of lifting devices for raising and lowering the panels so that the floor or the panels can be worked on. Insofar as known, there is no tool that adequately addresses the problem of safely raising panels with an electrical raceway along the bottom edge. The modular panels manufactured and sold by Haworth, Inc. of Holland, Mich. are electrically prewired with electrical power blocks disposed adjacent opposite corners of the panel. The power blocks are interconnected by suitable wires or cables which extend through a channel, called a POWER BASE.TM. raceway, fixed to the lower edge of the panel. The raceway is particularly sensitive to lifting. Lifting at the panel channel supports is not possible, because the panel track is independent of the panels themselves. The track slides down and hooks into holes on the panel and lifting from the track will only dislodge the track from the hooks thereby lifting the track but not the panels, which may disconnect or short out the electrical system. What is needed is a special electrical adapter fitting that allows the panel to be lifted along the raceway without damaging the electrical connections.
Some panel systems, such as those sold by Steelcase, Inc. of Grand Rapids, Mich., have strips with slots upon which desks, bookshelves or accessories are hung and by which the panels can be lifted. In U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,261,643 and 5,385,335 to Wurdack, a method for lifting a panel with a rachet jack is described. The method makes use of a special three-fingered adapter that mates with the slots and is useful only with panels having such slots. The jacking mechanism, which was originally designed for use as a car jack, works on a rachet with a long leverage bar, giving the panel a shake with each click as the panel is lifted and raised. In addition, it is not always easy to find a location along a panel where there is enough space to use the long leverage bar without removing something from the panel.
In some modular panel configurations, a panel joins three or four other panels to form neighboring offices separated by common walls. Because of the weight of the desks, bookshelves and accessories hanging on the panels, it is necessary to apply a lifting force on more than one panel at such a corner to avoid undue torque and stress. With a crowbar or even a jack such as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,261,643 and 5,385,335, it is very difficult to apply an equal force on the panels in the corners.